New trial ordered in deadly mortar blast

The family of a 27-year-old Schofield Barracks solider killed when a mortar misfired at the Pohakuloa Training Area will get another chance to recover money from the manufacturer that assembled the mortar round.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals this week set aside a jury verdict that found General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products Inc. was not liable for causing the explosion.

The court ordered a new trial.

Staff Sgt. Oscar Rodriguez was killed in the March 10, 2006, explosion.

His family was joined in the suit by two other soliders who were injured, as well as by the family of another solider, Wilfredo Dayan­dante, who died of injuries in 2009.

General Dynamics contended that operator error caused the blast.

The soldiers and their families claimed the mortar round exploded prematurely because of a manufacturing defect.

In a 2-1 ruling Thursday, the majority said the trial judge erred in allowing the testimony of a General Dynamics witness, an Army investigator.

The majority said the investigator was not certified as an expert, but allowed to pre­sent "specialized and highly technical testimony about the cause of the explosion."

The dissenting judge said the admission of the investigator’s testimony was harmless because it could have been admitted as expert testimony.

When the verdict was returned in 2010, General Dynamics said it had offered $5.1 million to settle all claims, but the plaintiffs sought $29 million.